"Unintentional villain" Holger Rune did nothing wrong against Alejandra Davidovich Fokina in Madrid, feels Mark Petchey

Former British tennis player turned tennis commentator Mark Petchey believes that Holger Rune did nothing wrong in his controversial third-round loss to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at the 2023 Madrid Open.

Holger Rune went down 7-6(1), 5-7, 7-6(5) in three sets against the Spaniard in a closely fought late-night encounter on Sunday. The Madrid crowd was tough on the Dane, who appeared to clear off a mark from in the first set that left his opponent furious and drew the ire of the Spanish fans.

Mark Petchey defended the Dane taking to social media, stating that sometimes one becomes an "unintentional villain" while playing against a home player. However, the Brit believed that Rune’s actions during the match were not wrong, as he thought they were simply "great entertainment."

“@holgerrune2003 did nothing wrong in that match. Sometimes you have to expect you are going to be the unintentional villain when playing a home player. Great entertainment. Super intense,” tweeted Petchey.

Rune complained about the hostile crowd to chair umpire Carlos Bernardes during the match, insisting that he had done nothing wrong to make the crowd boo him. However, Bernardes told him to focus on playing tennis as it was the World No. 7’s actions that incited the crowd in the first place.

“I’m sure my body appreciates some rest” - Holger Rune

Holger Rune after winning the 2023 Munich Open

Holger Rune took to social media to express his feelings after his grueling three-set loss to Alejandro Davidoch Fokina. The 20-year-old said his body would appreciate the rest he gets after exiting the 2023 Madrid Masters in the third round after an encounter that lasted three hours and five minutes.

"Adios @mutuamadridopen 🇪🇸 I am sure my body appreciates some rest now before preparation starts for @internazionalibnlditalia Rome and Paris @rolandgarros 💪🏼," the Dane wrote on Instagram.

After lifting the BMW Open trophy coming into the Madrid, Rune had revealed that he was “not fine,” owing to a hectic schedule and a foot injury he picked up along the way. Between Monte-Carlo (runner-up finish) and Munich, the World No. 7 played ten matches in a span of two weeks, which was very hard on him physically.

The young Dane also congratulated Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, for a “solid performance” via his Twitter handle.

"Over and out in Madrid Congrats @alexdavidovich1 for a solid performance tonight #seeyounextyear @MutuaMadridOpen," Rune wrote.

The 20-year-old has had a fantastic 2023 season so far, reaching the final in Monte-Carlo and lifting his first title of the year at the 2023 Munich Open. The young Dane has a win/loss record of 21-8 this season, with his record on clay standing at 8-2.